Working well
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Introduction
In this suite of activities, students develop their understanding of Australia’s health status over time and the link between wellbeing programs, work and study. They examine wellbeing programs offered by international companies and investigate the pros and cons of tax funded health and wellbeing programs versus programs paid for by private employers.
Students:
- undertake independent inquiries and research into health promotion and wellbeing campaigns or programs
- describe government roles and responsibilities for health promotion and wellbeing and determine their effectiveness
- investigate, in depth, Australia’s past, present and emerging health priorities
- propose ways of working towards better health and wellbeing at a school and workplace level.
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Teacher resources
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Wellness programs
Student learning resources
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Wellness programs
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Suggested activity sequence
This sequence is intended as a framework to be modified and adapted by teachers to suit the needs of a class group.
Part A: Wellness programs
- Ask students why it’s important that we are well. Introduce the idea of health programs as being either for preventative or treatment purposes, and the role of wellness programs in workplaces as both:
- preventative programs which aim to increase worker productivity
- programs that benefit individuals and society.
- Students complete the investigation.
- Use class discussion to work through student findings to consolidate their learning.
Part B: Check out overseas
- Introduce the task, which is to investigate wellness programs offered overseas to see if Australia could learn anything from them. Explain that students will be working in pairs and will report back to the class on their findings.
- With the class, brainstorm a list of the information they consider is worth looking for. Agree on the final list of things students will be finding out.
- Use a grouping strategy to organise students into pairs.
- Each pair is to investigate an international company and each company needs to be investigated at least twice.
Fitbit the company
Goldman Sachs
Houston Methodist
Honest Tea
Motley Fool
Accenture
Google
Draper
Earth friendly products
Microsoft
- Give students 15 minutes to find the information required.
- Students with the same company compare notes and develop a consolidated list of the features of the program they investigated.
- Conduct a class discussion to identify the common and the unusual features of wellness programs offered by the companies investigated.
Part C: Tax versus private enterprise
- Ask students who should be responsible for the health and wellbeing of workers? Consider the following discussion thread.
- Who would have an interest in the health and wellbeing of workers (employers, the government, the community, workers themselves) and what would that interest be?
- What ‘responsible’ might mean (cost, time, programs).
- Where that responsibility may begin and end (workplace, school, community, home).
- What aspects of health and wellbeing might be considered?
- Explain to students that they will be investigating the pros and cons of tax funded health and wellbeing programs versus programs paid for by private employers.
- Display the visualiser and work through the questions on the task with the whole class to ensure all students have a clear understanding of the links between employers, the government/taxpayers, the community and workers, and workers health and wellbeing.
- Students work in table groups on the task.
- As a class, discuss group findings.